Thora (Thor-uh)
Physical Traits
Tall and wispy, the thora often stand between between six and seven feet tall on average, including their halo, the elongated section of their heads that forms a ring. Despite their heights, thora tend to have very slight frames. Despite their perceived fragileness, thora tend to be quite sturdy, a trait that most pre-Atlantean Venutian species tend to share. However, even with their natural hardiness, thora seldom tend to be particularly muscular or strong.
Thora are unique amongst other Venutian races in particular for their aforementioned halo, which houses unusually shaped nervous systems. With their neural passageways running through the halo, their two hemispheres of their brain are connected on both sides, creating a circular neural network that allows increased memory retention, problem solving and various other critical thinking activities.
In days past, before the planet stopped and the long night was an inevitable occurrence, the thora would enter an extended torpor state, living off their fat reserves they spent the long day building up. However, in the present, they no longer need to prepare for such a long period of inactivity. While it is still necessary for thora to sunbathe before going about the rest of their days, they’re now much more active throughout the entire year. As an added benefit, as they no longer have to prepare for the long night, they can spend their days however they wish, instead of just hunting and consuming food to be ready for such a long rest.
Thora can live upwards to two centuries, assuming they don’t succumb to any illness or health condition. As society advances, they may even begin to push that boundary even further, a long call from when many thora would barely live to see fifty. What is more significant however is that with their increased longevity, their quality of life does not see a significant decline until the very end, allowing even the oldest thora to live their lives to the fullest.
History The thora lived on Venus far before the Atlanteans first set foot on the planet. In small villages that dotted the landscape, they hunted and gathered as best they could to prepare for the long nights. Given that the supplies needed to get a small village through the long night were so great, it should be no surprise that even the largest of settlements numbered no more than a couple hundred. Also, with such fierce competition over resources, villages were often few and far between. When the Atlanteans came, things began to change for the better at first. The Great Machine was built, turning the barely habitable planet into a much more livable space. Though the nights were still long and cold, the simplest of technologies progressed their lives significantly. Sustainable power sources allowed for higher levels of comfort, especially in the frigid times. New farming techniques and equipment allowed villages to actually farm significant amounts of food in time to store them. Once the planet was more sustainable, the visiting Atlanteans turned their eyes towards finding a way around the solar cycle of Venus. There was no way of working around this without causing significant damage to the planet, so since they couldn’t make the planet move how they wanted to, they just decided to make the cities move. Many walking cities were built during this time with much of the labor being done by the native thora. After the construction was complete, the vast majority of the thora took to living on these moving metropolises. In the present, once Ra came to power, many of these cities were either destroyed or repurposed by the God-King. Very few remain, at least under free control, but this is still where the majority of thora live. Some have taken advantage of the tidal lock and attempt to live quiet lives in the more temperate areas of the planet, but on a planet like Venus, there is rarely such a thing as a quiet life.
Culture Their own lives having been dramatically changed by the arrival of outsiders, thora are often very accepting of people outside their own culture. It is not uncommon for guests to be invited to stay for a ‘night’ or two with a welcoming host. However, given that thora come from a society where everyone contributed to stay alive, being an undue burden on your hosts for an extended period of time is frowned upon. When the thora began to come together in this walking cities, each coming from a different village, they had little in common besides their biology, so that became a major basis for their culture. Their halo became a major artistic representation. It is common for thora to decorate their halo’s with rings and other decorations as both an artistic expression of themselves, but also a sign of social significance. Different decorations could mean any variety of things that would be imperceptible to those outside thora culture, from wedding prospects, to mourning, to particular individual achievements. On an individual level, most thora don’t see themselves as any more important than any other thora, a remnant of their time as a communal society. As such, when making important decisions or looking for guidance, thora will consult a large number of people in order to gain as much insight as possible and to see all of their options. Given that many thora lived in small, isolated communities for so long, it's not unusual that many small languages exist in their community. However, when they came together in walking cities, most thora abandoned their older, smaller languages for lower Atlantean in order to have a shared tongue. While smaller dialects are still spoken, particularly in thora villages that dot the planet, by and large they will speak exclusively in low Atlantean.
History The thora lived on Venus far before the Atlanteans first set foot on the planet. In small villages that dotted the landscape, they hunted and gathered as best they could to prepare for the long nights. Given that the supplies needed to get a small village through the long night were so great, it should be no surprise that even the largest of settlements numbered no more than a couple hundred. Also, with such fierce competition over resources, villages were often few and far between. When the Atlanteans came, things began to change for the better at first. The Great Machine was built, turning the barely habitable planet into a much more livable space. Though the nights were still long and cold, the simplest of technologies progressed their lives significantly. Sustainable power sources allowed for higher levels of comfort, especially in the frigid times. New farming techniques and equipment allowed villages to actually farm significant amounts of food in time to store them. Once the planet was more sustainable, the visiting Atlanteans turned their eyes towards finding a way around the solar cycle of Venus. There was no way of working around this without causing significant damage to the planet, so since they couldn’t make the planet move how they wanted to, they just decided to make the cities move. Many walking cities were built during this time with much of the labor being done by the native thora. After the construction was complete, the vast majority of the thora took to living on these moving metropolises. In the present, once Ra came to power, many of these cities were either destroyed or repurposed by the God-King. Very few remain, at least under free control, but this is still where the majority of thora live. Some have taken advantage of the tidal lock and attempt to live quiet lives in the more temperate areas of the planet, but on a planet like Venus, there is rarely such a thing as a quiet life.
Culture Their own lives having been dramatically changed by the arrival of outsiders, thora are often very accepting of people outside their own culture. It is not uncommon for guests to be invited to stay for a ‘night’ or two with a welcoming host. However, given that thora come from a society where everyone contributed to stay alive, being an undue burden on your hosts for an extended period of time is frowned upon. When the thora began to come together in this walking cities, each coming from a different village, they had little in common besides their biology, so that became a major basis for their culture. Their halo became a major artistic representation. It is common for thora to decorate their halo’s with rings and other decorations as both an artistic expression of themselves, but also a sign of social significance. Different decorations could mean any variety of things that would be imperceptible to those outside thora culture, from wedding prospects, to mourning, to particular individual achievements. On an individual level, most thora don’t see themselves as any more important than any other thora, a remnant of their time as a communal society. As such, when making important decisions or looking for guidance, thora will consult a large number of people in order to gain as much insight as possible and to see all of their options. Given that many thora lived in small, isolated communities for so long, it's not unusual that many small languages exist in their community. However, when they came together in walking cities, most thora abandoned their older, smaller languages for lower Atlantean in order to have a shared tongue. While smaller dialects are still spoken, particularly in thora villages that dot the planet, by and large they will speak exclusively in low Atlantean.
- Starting Wound Threshold: 12 + Brawn
- Starting Strain Threshold: 8 + Willpower
- Starting Experience: 100
- Starting Skills:
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